I don't own the Hakuouki anime or any of it's characters.

Susuma Yamazaki made no noise as the entered the room, his tread was lighter than a breeze as was required of men of his profession, he was a gatherer of info, a silent observer, a spy. He stood in a darkened corner of the room, watching the Shinsengumi enjoy their evening meal, all except Harada-san an Okita-san were there, idly chatting away. After minutes had passed he stepped from the shadows to reveal himself to his comrades.
"Shit Susumu, you will give me a heart attack!" Nagakura shouted in surprise clutching his chest dramatically, pale as a newly washed sheet,
Heisuke burst into laughter barely being able to contain himself as he blurted out, "Maybe if you shut up for once, you'll notice what's going on around you."
Nagakura gave Heisuke a scorching glare before muttering to himself. "As if you knew he was there..." his red cheeks showing his embarrassment.

"What brings you here so late in the evening Susuma-san?" Hijikata asked, no smile on his face, knowing that Susumu rarely brought good tidings late at night.

Susumu moved closer, kneeling before this superior officers, bowing his head in respect.
"Kondo-dono, Hijikata-dono, your presence has been requested in Hiroshima, it's a matter of great urgency." He looked up at his superiors, concern written on his face, "There will be a meeting in 7 days, with orders for both the Shinsengumi and the general militia."

Silence fell over the room as all stared at the Commander and Susumu.
"Do you know anything else Susumu-san?...What could this be about?" the commander asked clearing his throat.
"It was not made clear Kondo-dono, according to rumours and my own investigation, there seems to be plans for a large offensive in the near future."
"Against whom?"
"As far as I am aware, it could be one of two factions Kondo-dono. There has been word of a splinter faction of the Chōshū , not much is known of them, or it could be the Mori Clan, both groups have grown in strength in the last few months and pose a threat to the Shogunate."
"The Mori...that could be a difficulty, they are great in number and always well trained." Hijikata said softly, a frown knitting his brow, "Anything on the other group Susumu-san?"
"Nothing Hijikata-dono, only rumours and speculation."
"Could you try to find out more?"
"I will have to ask some of my agents to look into it, the Shogunate has me running errands lately." Susumu sighed heavily, "Not all of them pleasant either."

"Interesting" Kondo muttered deep in thought, everyone's attention directed at him, a grin suddenly creeped over his face, slapping a large palm on his knee he quickly stood up. "Well Toshi, it sounds like we have to get packing, we leave after breakfast!" With that he turned to leave speaking as he did. "Susumu-san, help yourself to some food...make that Heisuke's food." he chuckled. "He's getting a bit plump." Kondo laughed loudly as he left hearing Heisuke's complaints ringing in the background.

/

There was ten of them, whispering nervously where they gathered, all with their hands close to their weapons, twitching, fearful.
Okita and Harada were hidden in the shadows of a nearby building, staring at their prey, waiting.
The plan was simple, Okita would take the three men closest to them and Harada, with his spear's longer reach, would take care of the two men furthest from the building, they would in effect pincher the last five men between them, cutting off any means of escape.

Okita's breath came in short, excited gasps as he waited for their signal, he enjoyed the fight, reveled in making his blade dance to his will, the fear in his opponent's eyes, the adrenaline in his veins.

A low whistle disguised as an owl hoot came from close by, it was their sign and made Harada silently move down the length of the wall, positioning himself for attack.
In a flash Okita was moving, taking down the closest two victims before they could even realise what was happening, he could feel his blade slice through flesh and bone on the first, severing the man's head with a sharp hissing sound, blood spraying through the air, painting the low evening light red.
The second was no luckier, with Okita's blade skewering through his abdomen before being forcibly jerked to the side, as Okita withdrew his blade the man fell to the ground, spilling his life on the road.
The third had some time to gather his wits, but wits are not enough when facing one of the best swordsmen in Japan. Okita deftly sidestepped the man's clumsy thrust and knocked the katana from his hand with one precise swoop, the man gave Okita a look of wide-eyed panic before he was slashed across the chest to his shoulder, just to feel the blade reverse and dig into his neck, a thick spray of blood painted Okita's blue overcoat as he finished the cut.

Harada had been just as effective, taking down three men on the other side of the street, now Okita and Harada were staring the remainder of the men in the eye.
"Where's your leader?" Harada growled, wiping blood off his cheek.

One man, seemingly the only one not frozen in fear, shakily raised his hand and pointed at a body laying behind him.
"Shit, we should have kept that one alive" Harada spat.
Okita pointed the tip of his blade at the survivors. "I guess we can take some of these in for questioning."
The trapped mens' silence was broken by a single voice. "NEVER!" the frantic shout came, followed by a blood curdling scream for attack. Emboldened by their comrade, the rest of the men once again took up arms, rushing the Shinsengumi in a maddened frenzy.

In the blink of an eye it was over.
Pierce. Slash. Stab. Death.
Harada and Okita danced in unison as they culled their attackers, their speed godly, their feet never touching the ground, men falling one by one as the cobblestones beneath their feet were washed in red.

Harada stepped back giving his spear a last swing through the air to rid it of blood, as he did so he noticed the body at his feet had two shurikens sticking from its back.
"Odd," Harada said. "This man wasn't killed by either of us, look." he pointed at the dead man.
Okita stared down at the man, immediately noticing the two stars that brought his death, his head snapped up, scanning the dark street and rooftops, searching for the woman he knew was close by.
It was all black, no sight, no sound. Where is she?
"Seems we're not alone," Harada commented, shrugging. "As long as those shurikens are in the enemy's back I don't mind the help, although we should tell Kondo-dono and Hijikata-san." He made to leave but was stopped in his tracks when he noticed Okita staring pensively into the dark.

"Okita?... Okita-san! Are you coming?" Okita turned to him, an unreadable expression on his face.
"Yes." was all he muttered before joining his comrade.
What's going on with you Okita?

Harada, in an attempt to lighten his friends' mood, broke the silence.
"Do you smell that Okita-san, it smells like orange blossom, it's been in my nose for the last hour at least."
"Orange Blossom?" Okita repeated his friend's words without contemplating them. "No, I don't..."

/

As Okita and Harada came through the gate, Chizuru came running towards them, a frantic Asuka in tow. Seeing both men covered in blood they immediately assumed the worst.
"Okita-dono." Asuka whelped as she approached. "What happened, are you injured?"
Her eyes filled with worry, she grabbed Okita's arm when she reach his side, clutching on to him like she was afraid he would vanish.
"I'm fine Asuka-chan." he said simply, smiling down at her.
His smile affected her, Asuka's cheeks instantly turned a rosy pink as she stared into his eyes, realising she was holding on to his arm, her blush deepened even more before she let her hand fall to her side.
"There is so much blood Okita-dono, are you sure you are not hurt?"
"Yes." Okita said gently, "This is another man's blood Asuka-chan."
Her eyes widened in horror, she had not considered it before, everyone had been nothing but friendly to her so far. But now, faced with clear evidence, she understood, she lived with men who killed for a living.
"Does it bother you Asuka -chan?" Okita asked, his green eyes shining brilliantly in the light of the low lamps.
Asuka could not help but muster up smile, her heart skipping a beat when she looked at his handsome face. "Truthfully Okita-dono, my answer is yes, it does bother me." silence fell for a few seconds, " But a man as admirable as you would certainly not kill for pleasure, I am sure."
Recalling his excitement before the attack, Okita felt uncomfortable, shrugging her off he walked towards his room "You give me too much credit Asuka-chan." he said softly as he disappeared into the dark.

"What...what did I do?" Asuka asked confused, turning to Chizuru for an answer.
Chizuru shook her head in her own confusion "I don't know, maybe he's not feeling well?"